Background and objectives: This study way conducted in order to investigate the magnitude of the women suicide attempted by burning in Sulaimani and to ascertain the factors related to female suicide, including sociocultural factors and ways to solve this problem.
Methods: The present study is a prospective study of self inflicted burns by women treated at the burn unit of Sulaimani teaching hospital and Emergency hospital over five years period from 1st January 2003 to 31st December 2007.
Results: Out of the total number of 760 admissions to burn unit over the period, 386(50.2%) patients were positively identified as having attempted suicide by burning. Of them 345(46.6%) patients were females and 41 were males. The Suicide attempted was more common in the marriages women 258(74.7%) and women with low educational level168 (48.7%). The most common causes of suicide were arrogant husband (60) (17.4%) and forced marriage (58) (16.8%).
Conclusion: Burning by kerosene is a common, traditional, and dramatic way of attempting suicide by women in Sulaimani. We suggest that Kurdish women organizations or other related authorities have to start programs for communications with women to rescue those in desperate situations, and suicide prevention programs in Kurdistan to prevent suicide as well as to evaluate prevention programs to identify evidence-based practices that are culturally appropriate and affordable within severe resource constrains.